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The N-Gage (a pun on ''engage'') is a feature phone and handheld game system from Nokia, announced on 4 November 2002 and released on 7 October 2003.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Let the sales begin! Nokia N-GageTM game deck sales to start )〕 It runs on the original Series 60 on Symbian OS v6.1. N-Gage attempted to lure gamers away from the Game Boy Advance by including mobile phone functionality. This was unsuccessful, partly because the buttons, designed for a phone, were not well-suited for gaming and when used as a phone the original N-Gage was described as resembling a "taco", which led to it becoming a well-known mocking nickname along with the "Frankenphone".〔"(Hold On, My Taco is Ringing Nokia says it has the phone for Gen Y )", "CNN.com" 8 December 2003〕 Nokia introduced the N-Gage QD in 2004 as re-design to the original "Classic" N-Gage, fixing widely criticized issues and design problems. However it was unable to make an improving impact, and with only 2 million units sold in its two years, the N-Gage and its QD model have been a commercial failure.〔http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2146487/nokia-holds-fire-mobile-gaming〕 It was discontinued in November 2005, with Nokia moving its gaming capabilities on selected Series 60 smartphones. This was announced as the N-Gage platform or "N-Gage 2.0" in 2007, carrying on the N-Gage name.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=N-Gage First Access Begins! ) 〕〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=N-Gage First Access ) 〕 ==History== In the late 1990s, gamers increasingly carried both mobile phones and handheld game consoles. Nokia spotted an opportunity to combine these devices into one unit. Nokia announced in November 2002 that they would develop the N-Gage, a device that integrated these two devices. Instead of using cables, multiplayer gaming was accomplished with Bluetooth or the Internet (via the N-Gage Arena service). The N-Gage also included MP3 and Real Audio/Video playback and PDA-like features into the system. With a launch price of US $299,〔 the N-Gage was not commercially popular. In its first weeks of availability in the United States, it was outsold by the Game Boy Advance 100 to 1.〔("The N-Gage Doesn't" ) ''Game Now'', January 2004. Retrieved 5 May 2007.〕〔Smith, David. ("N-Gage Moves Under 5,000 Units" ) ''1UP'', October 2003. Retrieved 5 May 2007〕 Within 17 days of the deck's release, popular retailers GameStop and Electronics Boutique began offering $100 rebates on the deck's price.〔Smith, David. ("US Retailers Cut N-Gage Price" ). ''1UP'', October 2003. Retrieved 5 May 2007.〕 Besides its gaming capabilities, the N-Gage was a Series 60 smartphone, running Symbian OS 6.1, with features similar to those of the Nokia 3650 (it does not have an integrated camera, however). It was able to run all Series 60 software (other than those that require a camera), and Java MIDP applications as well. Its main CPU was an ARM Integrated (ARMI) compatible chip (ARM4T architecture) running at 104 MHz, the same as the Nokia 7650 and 3650 phones. As of August 2007, it was estimated that Nokia had shipped more than two million N-Gage game decks.〔("Play It Again, Nokia. For the 3rd Time." ). 27 August 2007. ''The New York Times''. Retrieved 27 August 2007.〕 The "N-Gage" brand name still had a poor reputation within the gaming media and among the few consumers who recognized the N-Gage brand, due to the weakness of the system's first games and the original model's limitations. Many gamers were unaware of the later QD redesign. Nokia had more than 50 games available for the system. While the N-Gage did not have any significant financial successes, it did have a handful of critical successes. ''Pocket Kingdom: Own the World'' received a handful of glowing reviews when it was released, and ''Pathway to Glory'' was Nokia's first self-published success. These games came perhaps too late to have much effect in improving the perception of the N-Gage hardware itself in the eyes of consumers or press. In February 2004, with the N-Gage failing to make a major impact 4 months on, CEO Jorma Ollila claimed that the device would be given until 2005 to be judged whether it's a success or failure. In January 2005, UK sales-tracking firm ChartTrack dropped the N-Gage from its regular ELSPA chart, commenting that "The N-Gage chart, though still produced, is of little interest to anyone. Sales of the machine and its software have failed to make any impact on the market at all." Although only directly reflective of the UK market, this was interpreted by some as a serious blow to the N-Gage as a viable gaming platform. Despite this, Nokia reaffirmed their commitment to the N-Gage as a platform, to the point where a new version of the hardware was rumored after GDC 2005. February 2005 saw Nokia appoint Gerard Wiener, formerly of Sega Europe, to the post of Director and General Manager for Games at Nokia. Wiener steered Nokia away from looking at the N-Gage as primarily being a games console to "this is a mobile phone that is great for playing games on." In November 2005, Nokia admitted that the N-Gage failed, selling only one-third of the company's expectations. The product was discontinued from Western markets, but would continue to be marketed in India and parts of Asia.〔http://www.geek.com/games/nokia-admits-n-gage-is-a-failure-560162/ Nokia admits N-Gage is a failure〕 Nokia did continue N-Gage promotions at E3 2006.〔http://gizmodo.com/172693/e3-2006-n-gage-still-kickin N-Gage still kickin'〕 The last game to be released in the US for the system was ''Civilization'' in March 2006 according to Metacritic.com.〔https://web.archive.org/web/20100417163258/http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ngage/civilization ''Civilization'' game-page on Metacritic, archived April 2010〕 In November 2006, Nokia released its last game for the N-Gage QD - combat racer ''Payload''. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「N-Gage (device)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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